Still need best ranked for Public Interest? Forum

[TIKITEMBO]

.

[BruceWayne]

That's the thing, most of the realistic option ones don't care about where you go to school. And those that do care, care more in the sense that (1) they care that you go to a school in their region because they are familiar with those schools and (2) the extra prestige of a top school is nice, but certainly not a must.

[TIKITEMBO]

.

[gilagarta]

So you might not have to go to a school with Batman level prestige and could attend one of Spider Jerusalem recognition?

Sorry, I am a nerd.

Anyway, I have been getting that impression too and the data I've been coming across hasn't indicated nearly the level of discrepancy that exists for those in the private sector who attend lower ranked schools. I'm just trying to get a sense of how accurate the notion is that people attending say T-30ish schools can get paid the same/have the same access to jobs as those attending higher ranked schools. Where does the prestige of going into a high ranked school for PI start to pay off?

What kind of PI jobs are you interested in? If you're looking to work in a small town or at a very small, local organization, sure, prestige may not matter. But if you're interested in national nonprofits, federal government or even local govt or public defender positions in big markets, prestige matters very much.

[TIKITEMBO]

.

[rayiner]

The thing is, PI is ridiculously difficult to get. Biglaw is usually easier to get. The jobs just aren't out there --- they've been decimated by the recession and the economic crises hitting state governments. For example, the PD departments that hire nationally are ridiculously oversubscribed, and good luck getting PD jobs in smaller markets without strong ties to the area.

If you're interested in federal or state government work, go to a T14. Do OCI so you have a big firm option for graduation, then do the PI job search during 3L. If you strike out finding a PI job, at least you can work at a big firm for a few years and lateral later. A top school will also make it much easier to get a clerkship, which can be a great way to get into desirable PI jobs. The fact is that even the federal government right now doesn't want to spend the resources training fresh grads. Many agencies are just coming out of, or are still in, hiring freezes. DOJ honors cut their class size by more than half for 2012. Going to a firm or getting a clerkship and coming in with some experience will make getting a PI job much easier in this climate.

See this article from before DOJ cut their class from 160 to 75: http://scammedhard.blogspot.com/2010/08 ... 11-is.html